#watchthis
Voice actress Chiaki Omigawa, best known for her roles in Arakawa under the Bridge and Soul Eater, can do more than act. She can also sing. But that's not her secret talent. More »
#ruhroh
Remember 2008? Good Lord, was it nearly three years ago, at E3, that Square Enix announced Final Fantasy XIII would have an Xbox 360 release, utterly horrifying fanboys of game, publisher and PS3 alike? More »
#gamingapps
The iPhone and iPad are great for reading comics. The iPhone and iPad are great for playing games. Square Enix taps top talent to combine the two in Imaginary Range, a new sort of interactive comic available free in the iTunes App Store. More »
Looks like the original SNES version of Square Enix's seminal role-playing game Chrono Trigger is bound for the Wii's Virtual Console service. The ESRB recently rated Chrono Trigger for Nintendo's platform, so expect the 16-bit version of that JRPG favorite to show up on a Wii Shop Channel near you. (The PlayStation port is also imminent for North American gamers.) More »
Square Enix's beloved Chrono Trigger has popped up on the ESRB site for "Wii," meaning the SNES classic will also make its way to the North American Virtual Console. The title was previously announced for digital distribution on the Nintendo console for Japan and Europe.
No official word on price, but it'll likely be the same 100-point markup as in Japan, making the title a premium 900 Wii Points ($9). The game was also recently rated for PSP and PS3, alluding to a PSN release. Still no word about the mobile version for North America, but at least there's still the DS version.
Were mere words not enough to sate your excited curiosity about Square Enix's recently announced prequel for its pricey iOS RPG, Chaos Rings Omega? The company's handheld branch has launched a trailer to go along with the title's unveiling, which you'll find posted after the jump.
#comics
The comic book publisher behind Hellboy and The Umbrella Academy have launched a digital Dungeon Siege III comic book series, and you can read the first issue right now courtesy of the newly-opened Dark Horse Digital. More »
If you're interested in delving into the lore behind Dungeon Siege 3 before the RPG drops June 21, you might want to flip through the virtual pages of Dark Horse's comic book tie-in. The first, ten-page issue of the illustrated prequel is now available on Dark Horse's official site.
So, that "ultimate collection" of Final Fantasy XI you bought two years ago? Turns out it wasn't really ultimate at all, because Square has just announced the new, even more ultimater Final Fantasy XI Ultimate Collection Abyssea Edition. So, what do you get for $20? We've got all four expansion packs, all three add-on scenarios and all three of the Abyssea battle areas originally released in 2010.
As if all that weren't enough, the Ultimate Abyssea Edition also includes the in-game Destrier Beret, which packs in loads of bonus effects like increased skill gain, extra movement speed and both magic and health regeneration. The new edition will be available for download beginning May 16. Our sympathies to all of the early adopters who have partaken in Final Fantasy XI over the last nine years because, let's face it, you really got screwed here.
Adam Jensen is a man with vengeance on his mind. The last time I met him in Deus Ex: Human Revolution, I witnessed his transformation: a change fueled by violence and subsequently bestowing him with a wide range of augmentations and new, metallic body parts. And probably a pretty hefty medical bill. But he's finally found them; he's found the group responsible for doing this to him.
The complex they're meeting in is an unassuming building on the outskirts of Detroit, easily mistaken for one of the other derelict warehouses in the area that vagrants like to squat in -- if they're not discovered by the numerous armed patrolling guards, of course.
Being outnumbered, it's apparent that a stealthy approach is required for Jensen to succeed, and he's got some neat augmentations to help him during this particular gameplay segment (about 10 hours into the game). The cloak I so heavily relied on in the past is available, as well as sound-dampening tech for Jensen's footsteps, but there's also a pretty interesting skill I hadn't seen before. It allows Jensen to safely and silently float down from higher vantage points, preventing damage. The animation looks like it was ripped from the book How to Look Like Magneto.
Despite its premium price, one of Square Enix's earliest attempts at an original title for iOS is getting not one, but two follow-ups. The latest issue of Famitsu reports (via Andriasang) that Chaos Rings, which debuted on the App Store for an unprecedented $13 last year, will see a prequel, Chaos Rings Omega, released next month in Japan, followed by Chaos Rings 2 at a later date.
Available for iOS devices, the original game is a turn-based dungeon crawler with arena battles featuring four teams of two characters. Square Enix's teaser ad for the Chaos Rings sequel doesn't hint at what (if any) changes we can expect to that gameplay formula, but we're hoping that, on the technical side, both it and Chaos Rings Omega are universal apps with iPad 2 enhancements to help soften the inevitable sticker shock.Square Enix summoning Chaos Rings prequel & sequel for iOS
#dreamhome
In role-playing game Final Fantasy XIII, the protagonist Lightning didn't have a house. She had one. That is, until Square Enix cut it. More »
We admit -- we might have gotten our dander up a little too quickly following Final Fantasy 6's release in Japan on PSN. We've just been hurt so many times before by Square Enix's Japanese PSOne Classics re-releases, which tend to take a while to come stateside, provided they ever come at all. However, we've got hope for the series sixth, Esper-filled installment: The ESRB recently rated Final Fantasy 6 for U.S. release on PSP and PS3.
Now, that doesn't necessarily mean the game's going to come out next week, but it practically ensures that we'll be able to grab it from the PlayStation Store at some point in the future. While we wait for an official release date, why not join us in trying to remember exactly what kind of "Partial Nudity" is featured in Final Fantasy 6? Maybe that's a reference to Ultros? We guess he's totally naked throughout the entire game, but at the same time, he's an octopus. That kind of behavior is to be expected.
#rumor
Just so you know, IO Interactive was doin' aug- alternate-reality games before doing alternate-reality games was cool, giving up a look at what's believed to be Hitman's next entry. A trademark filing by Square Enix now indicates it will be titled "Hitman: Absolution." More »
Unlike the more recently announced heroes, we've known about Dungeon Siege 3's Anjali ever since the game was first revealed. But Obsidian says you don't know her quite well enough, and this new trailer for the June release should help with that.
Looks like the enhanced PlayStation port of Square Enix's seminal role-playing game Chrono Trigger is bound for the PlayStation 3 and PSP. The ESRB has just rated Chrono Trigger for those platforms, so expect the update of that JRPG favorite to show up at a PSone Classic on a PlayStation Store near you soon. More »
Square Enix's pretty-much-the-best-game-ever SNES RPG Chrono Trigger has the distinct disadvantage of being, as aforementioned, pretty much the best game ever and, simultaneously, pretty expensive in its native format. Fortunately, the game's price might not be an issue much longer -- the ESRB has rated Chrono Trigger for release on PS3 and PSP.
The ESRB listing doesn't provide any additional details about the title, but if we were betting men, we'd say it's the PS1 re-release that was included in the Final Fantasy Chronicles collection (to be distributed through PSN as a "PSOne Classic"). If we were men who were really bad at betting, we'd say it was some kind of magical Direct X11 remake, chock-full of social networking features and support for 3D TVs.
Final Fantasy Type-0, previously called Final Fantasy Agito XIII, will be out this summer in Japan on the PSP - on two UMDs. The game's website went live today with character art and screens. The music is the main draw, though! [via Type-0] More »
Before they became mopey, meteorologically named belt-enthusiasts, Final Fantasy protagonists used to be heroic, cheerful and chosen youths, with names like "Ingus" and "Luneth." Thankfully, Square Enix hasn't lost touch with that younger generation of yesteryear, having released a 3D remake of Final Fantasy III on DS, the iPhone and iPod Touch, and -- as of today -- the iPad.
The latest version is based on the iPhone release, which Touch Arcade called the "definitive version of a classic RPG." Consider that praise as well as warning, since Final Fantasy III remains an occasionally harsh, old-school experience. But then, there's also someone called "Refia."
Moon Diver will become available on Xbox Live Arcade on May 4 for 1200 MSP ($15). The four-player "Strider for the 21st century" hit the PSN last month, and was shortly followed by some DLC packs.
Be sure to give the trial a go before purchase. Just sayin'.
After a successful launch on the PlayStation Network, Square Enix delivers Strider-creator Koichi Yotsui's downloadable multiplayer side-scroller Moon Diver to Xbox Live Arcade on May 4. More »
#toybox
Don't sweat it, Americans! You may not be getting the fancy Deus Ex Collector's Edition that includes an action figure, but you're certainly free to go buying the figure on his own, as he's part of an entire line being released by Square Enix. More »
Do you live in Europe, Australia, or New Zealand and long for a super fancy, ultra limited edition of Deus Ex: Human Revolution? Square Enix has announced plans for a "very limited Collector's Edition" to launch alongside the regular, old, boring and utterly normal edition when it arrives this summer.
The "very limited" iteration of Deus Ex comes packed with a "highly collectable" figure of protagonist Adam Jensen, the "Explosive Mission Pack" (which is also part of GameStop's pre-order incentive), a smattering of in-game weapons, 10,000 extra in-game credits, a "making of" DVD and soundtrack, and a 40-page art book. How much will all that "very limited" stuff cost you? Square's not saying just yet, though pricing and specifics on availability will be made clear "closer to launch."
#collectorsedition
North America gets Deus Ex: Human Revolution on August 23. We even get the fancy Augmented Edition, packed with extras and downloadable content. What we don't get is this sexy Adam Jensen action figure. He's PAL region only. More »
#toywalker
Besides making Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest, Square Enix also makes plastic figures under its Play Arts brand. And this summer, it's releasing more Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Play Arts figurines. More »
Square Enix has sent over a trailer for the last playable character for Dungeon Siege 3. In addition to Lucas the Guardian, Anjali the Arkon, and Katarina the Gun Witch, Reinhart Manx will be tearing it up by throwing down some magical fisticuffs. What's with that hair though, Kenny Rogers?
We're at the end of our wit-rope, you guys. We're not sure how much more of these injustices we can suffer -- we thought that, with the North American PSN release of Vagrant Story and Xenogears, we were on track to catch up to the Japanese PSN's RPG offerings. However, Square Enix's Shinji Hashimoto revealed on Twitter yesterday that Japan would be receiving the PSOne remake of Final Fantasy VI on the PSN's Game Archives platform on April 20.
For those keeping score, that means the only pre-PS2 Final Fantasy title missing from the platform will be Final Fantasy IV -- though, considering it got its own PSOne remake in 1997, it's really only a matter of time before it shows up. And once it does, you'll be able to hear our anguished cries across the globe.
Square Enix has made it possible to enjoy the excellent Space Invaders Infinity Gene soundtrack, by Taito "house band" Zuntata, for use even outside of shmup-related activities.
The publisher has released the album on CD, the Amazon MP3 Store and iTunes (and mora in Japan), bundling all the tracks from the iPhone and XBLA/PSN releases, plus the iPhone update, into a single music collection. The CD edition also includes "a visual reference guide/sticker sheet depicting all 90 characters from the game."
This is the first simultaneously digital and retail release for a Zuntata album; if you want to know why that's so awesome, we suggest listening to some preview tracks on iTunes. That way, you'll hear how cool the music is and realize you didn't have to mail-order a $50 CD from Japan.
The first DLC pack for Moon Diver arrived this Tuesday along with the PSN update. The 99-cent "Silence" pack added a new playable character and a score attack mode to the Strider-esque side-scroller. Two additional DLC items were announced today, one coming next week and the other currently without a date.
On April 26, two more infinitely scrolling Score Attack stages, "Orbit," and "Rage," will be available in a single 99-cent pack. Sometime in the future, the free DLC Pack #3 will include the "Chain Kill Mode," in which players attempt to kill as many enemies as possible while maintaining a combo. "A brand new world awaits if you are able to survive the attacking hordes!" If you're lucky, maybe it'll be a new horde-free world.
Like the "Chain Kill" DLC, the Xbox 360 version of Moon Diver remains undated, with Square Enix saying only that "Pricing and availability for the Xbox LIVE Arcade for Xbox 360 will be announced at a later date."
#ohthatkefka
Soon all the Final Fantasy anyone could ever need will be found on the PlayStation Network, as Square Enix releases Final Fantasy VI on the Japanese PSN. Between VI and IX, that's all the FF anyone needs. More »
